The prior art has attempted to adopt rigid protective materials in the form of brittle sleeves of extensive length, in proportion to their diameter, to protect the production tubing by taking up the difference in flexibility through cushioning material. Such approaches have failed to solve the problem. The protective tubular cover of carbide is segmented, that is, made up of rigid parts having planar end surfaces at right angles to the longitudinal axis, which end surfaces maintain fluid tight contact with each other and maintain the character of a continuous wall consisting of contacting but laterally shiftable square ended blocks.